Cat Tails: The Cat Club

Peep lay on the fuzzy cover for the chair and wondered what to do about her counting. She’d tracked the days until the Mommy came home, and it had been two full cats the day she came home. Now she said she’d be leaving again. Should she keep counting? Start over? Not bother at all? She didn’t really like the idea of not counting at all. She kind of liked doing it. She had to think hard sometimes when it came to figuring out what to do when she finished a paw or a set of paws. Peep thought it was kind of like how the Mommy was when she was doing a hard math problem. She had to keep working at it until she got it right.

What to do? Then Peep remembered that the Mommy had said she’d be gone again for as long as she’d been gone the first time. She could start over and compare to how long she’d been gone the first time. Maybe that would keep her from worrying so much about when the Mommy would come home. Once she got to two cats, the Mommy would be home again.

Peep thought about her counting. She was definitely getting smarter. When she’d started this, she didn’t even know what the number two was. She’d known one, but was kind of hazy about anything larger than that. That’s why she’d figured out that whole counting system to begin with. Now she knew two! She was pretty sure that then there was three and four, and four made a paw. So it was one, two, three, paw. Then paw one, paw two, paw three, two paws. On and on up through cats, houses and then the world. The more she thought about it, the more impressed she was. And to think she’d figured this all out on her own! She really was a pretty smart cat.

The Mommy came into the room and said to the Peep, “Come sit with me and watch a movie, Peep. Jay and I are going out tonight and I want to spend as much time with you as I can before I leave.” Peep was so deep in thought, she didn’t even hear the Mommy, and barely noticed that she’d come into the room.

Her thoughts were so deep that they lulled her to sleep. When she woke again it was getting dark and there were no lights on in the house. Where had everyone gone? She realized that LT was talking to her. “Peep, we’re going to have the Cat Club meeting now. I didn’t want to skip this week altogether and the Mommy and Daddy are out, so let’s go!”

Peep went outside and the other cats were already gathered. LT took roll call, and when Ginger said, “Here,” Peep looked at her and was surprised. Ginger looked positively pudgy. Last week Peep hadn’t really noticed for whatever reason. She couldn’t have gained all that weight in one week.

“Old business?” LT inquired.

“Well, I guess this is old business. My owners said that we’re moving in three weeks. I don’t think that’s very long, and I really don’t want to leave y’all.” Ginger’s soft southern accent was so lovely to hear.

LT walked over and groomed her ears. “We’ll miss you dear. I wish you could stay, but you need your owners and they need you.”

“I know, but y’all understand me like my people don’t. Who knows if I’ll even live somewhere that I can go outside. They were talking about an apartment, and we all know what that means. Lots of people living like ants and either no cats or too many cats, all fighting for territory.”

“Oh, I hope you move to a big, beautiful house, Ginger,” Peep offered. Somewhere with lots of woods, and mice and baby bunnies and moles.

“We’ll see, dear. I think they don’t have enough money for a big house. They keep talking about how expensive it is to live around here. I’ll just have to wait and see.”

“Any other old business?” LT asked.

“The Mommy’s home, but she’s leaving again,” said Peep. “She told me she’d be gone the same amount of time, so I’m going to keep track of the days she’s gone so we’ll know when she’s coming back.”

“Very good, Peep. You’re really coming along, little cat. You’ve grown up a lot this summer.” For LT this was lavish praise.

“Thank you, LT,” Peep said, ducking her head.

“Any new business?” When no one replied, LT closed the meeting and Peep streaked for the house. She still didn’t trust Fuzzy, more grown up or not. It’s not as though she’d actually grown this summer. She was still the tiny little thing she’d always been. The Daddy’d had a friend over recently who’d asked if she was a kitten! As if.

Soon after full dark, the Mommy and Daddy returned. They came bearing leftovers, which they shared with Peep and Rudy. LT was out on the prowl as he usually was at night. It was so heavenly having the Mommy home. She wished she didn’t have to leave.